Buses, Buses, Buses!
by bbll22
Summary: *CHAPTER 5 NOW UP!* A collection of stories celebrating the Buses of Sodor for those new and old at the Bus Depot. Bertie, Agnes, Cordelia, Bulgy, Graham and Olga are here to prove Buses are just as good, if not better than trains! Reviews are welcome!
1. Summer Bus Extravaganza

Lee's Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends

Stories

**Summer Bus Extravaganza**

Summertime on the Island of Sodor always sees an increase in tourists and with this comes an increase in the use of trains and buses. The Fat Controller over the years has brought in other engines to help him with the likes of Stepney, but for the buses they keep on struggling. The depot desperately needs extra help and the Fat Controller agreed. A new yellow bus, called Agnes was brought in to help out Bertie, but even she couldn't help.  
"You're going to need more help…" muttered the Fat Controller to the depot manager.  
"Definitely…" agreed the manager.

The following morning, Bertie woke up to find his driver talking with Agnes and her driver.  
"What do you mean we need more help?" Agnes said indignantly in her Scottish tones. "Surely I'm good enough to help here?"  
"I'm afraid not…" said Bertie's driver. "The manager and the Fat Controller are doing their utmost to bring in some more help." Bertie was partly relieved at this but was also wary of more new buses coming into the depot. Agnes had only been here for a couple of weeks and they were getting along, but it was still a lot to get used to. Soon, his driver came over and it wasn't long before they set off for the task of the day. Holidaymakers wanted to be taken wherever and whenever they could and for Bertie and Agnes, there was no let-up in the relentless tourist demands.  
"The River Els, please…" demanded one passenger.  
"Tidmouth Bay!" said another.  
"Since when do you choose where we go?" Agnes said angrily. "We have set routes. We don't make exceptions!"  
"Well you should!" retaliated one of the passengers furiously. Agnes just ignored them and went on in her duties. Bertie was also getting easily frustrated and when the pair of them returned to the depot, the manager was standing proudly with two new buses. They were both open-topped buses and both looked very happy to be there.  
"Bertie….Agnes…" boomed the manager. "Please welcome Graham and Olga, the open-topped sibling buses." Bertie and Agnes looked on in admiration as the pair of them were double-decker buses just like Bulgy. He was still at the works for the time being converted back into a bus, so the siblings were brought in for great assistance. Graham was painted blue with yellow stripes on his side whilst Olga was painted dark green with yellow stripes on her side. The manager soon revealed though that Graham and Olga would only be temporary buses.  
"We're here for the summer…" Graham smiled.  
"Just to help you out in this time of increased business…" Olga added. Soon, both Graham and Olga were helping out Bertie and Agnes by providing tourists and holidaymakers with grand tours. But what no-one else knew was that a new permanent arrival for the depot was fast approaching…

Clunking along the Sodor roads some time later came the new arrival. She was being driven by the Fat Controller and she was a proud and posh coach.  
"You'll do us wonders…" the Fat Controller said to himself as the coach smiled proudly. She arrived some time later at the depot with a fanfare of smoke and steam emanating from her engine. Olga was in the depot at the time and just looked on in amazement.  
"Who are you?" she asked as she coughed with the smoke getting all around.  
"This is Cordelia…" answered the Fat Controller. "She will be helping take holidaymakers to their holiday locations and when you and Graham are not here, she will cover the tours."  
"I think everything is going to work out fine…" Cordelia smiled. Her silver paint and red stripe down her side made her stand out from everyone as it was, but her demeanour also showed a very different background to everyone indeed. She was posh – very posh indeed.  
"Let's just hope we can cope with amount of passengers then!" Olga smiled as her driver started up her engine. It hummed loudly and Olga was ready to leave for work. "Whispering Waterfall is always busy for tourists…" she sighed. "I've got to collect them this time!" Cordelia just looked on indignantly and let Olga leave the depot. Cordelia then reversed into her space and had a much needed rest after such an exhausting trip to Sodor.  
"It all begins tomorrow Cordelia…" The Fat Controller said before he walked off to fetch a lift from a passing taxi.  
"I hope the passengers are respectable and not rude…" Cordelia thought to herself before she fell to sleep.

Early next morning, Cordelia woke to see it was only her and Graham in the depot and Graham just smiled politely but Cordelia still felt awful. Her sleep had been interrupted all through the night and she was not in a happy mood at all. She didn't say hello to Graham and she didn't say hello to her driver. She grumbled loudly as her engine whirred and soon she set off to begin her super summer duties.  
"Where are we going?" Cordelia asked sleepily to her driver.  
"The beach…" he replied. "Passengers need to be returned to their accommodations as some families are leaving today." Cordelia was still too sleepy to realise that the beach was a noisy place and the passengers would have sand all over them. When she did realise it was too late as sand was littered across her lovely red carpet and the seats began to smell of the sea. Children were being noisy aswell and Cordelia could not believe how anyone could cope like this.  
"These are not the kind of passengers I should be taking…" she said to her driver loudly. Some of the passengers heard and felt insulted. One child even began to cry and a beach ball some of the children were playing with was thrown right at the driver. It bounced right off his head and he grumbled at the children. Cordelia grumbled at her driver and the parents of the children grumbled at Cordelia. Soon, no-one was paying attention to what was happening on the roads and then it happened. The roads by the beach had sand all round them and in the heat of summer, the sand was becoming slippy. Cordelia was going along the road fine and then she caught some of the slippy sand which sent her into a spin. The spin caused all the sand brought inside her by the passengers to flick up into the air and scatter all around.  
"Help!" cried Cordelia.  
"STOP!" cried the passengers.  
"I'm trying…" replied the driver and soon he managed to stop the slipping coach from slipping any further. Sand was everywhere inside Cordelia and she felt ruined. Her engine hissed and smoke billowed and that was the end of the trip for now.  
"These passengers are definitely not the kind I should be taking…" Cordelia said as she sulked to herself.

The depot soon heard the news about Cordelia's problem and knew something had to be done otherwise the passengers would miss their flights home. Graham was still the only one left in the depot at the time and was immediately sent to help her out.  
"Yes sir!" Graham said proudly as he set out to the beach. When Graham arrived he found Agnes was already trying to pull Cordelia away.  
"Come on, come on!" said Agnes impatiently. "Who knew coaches could be this heavy?" she then remarked. Cordelia wasn't impressed at all.  
"Can I help?" Graham said kindly. Agnes just smiled. Cordelia just kept on sulking.  
"Oh aye…" Agnes said. "Let's take Loch Ness back to the depot!"  
"Loch Ness?" Cordelia said indignantly. "I'm not that heavy!"  
"You are…" muttered Agnes as she and Graham began to work together to help Cordelia out. One by one, they got the families back to their accommodation and then later on Bertie and Olga worked together to take them to the airport. No-one missed their flight and Jeremy the Jet-plane was impressed. The depot manager however wasn't as impressed with Cordelia but he knew that once her engine was fixed, all would be fine.

Once cleaned out and fixed, Cordelia helped out as much as she could with the summer passengers. She was still very selective after the beach incident but she made sure she wasn't grumpy and grinned widely whenever passengers got aboard. Graham and Olga also upped their duties even more as they knew their time was coming to an end. When summer did finish, Bertie, Agnes, Cordelia, Graham and Olga all gathered at the depot for one last time. A photographer had come to take their photo with the depot manager.  
"You must get my best side!" Cordelia joked to the photographer and everyone laughed. Soon, farewells were said from everyone for Graham and Olga.  
"This isn't a proper goodbye!" Graham smiled.  
"We're back next summer!" Olga cheered. "Just make sure you miss us every day so that we know how wanted we were here!"  
"We'll do our best…" the depot manager said as he waved the sibling buses away. Bertie, Agnes and Cordelia smiled knowing being a Sodor bus is just as important as a Sodor train.


	2. Agnes, the Magpie and the Squirrel

Lee's Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends

Stories

**Agnes, the Magpie and the Squirrel**

Agnes the little Yellow Scottish Bus enjoys her life a lot on the Island of Sodor. She enjoys giving passengers a lift and enjoys seeing the sights of Sodor as she goes along the many twisty roads before her. Having good friends such as Bertie and Cordelia have helped make her less angry at times, but her old Scottish, stern ways come back to her very often now, and it can be annoying, as her driver found out one ordinary, icy day.

The sun may have been out but the day was bitterly cold and the roads were becoming slippy, but a new gritting machine called Gabby was helping rid the roads of ice. She had been loaned for a short while during this bad bit of weather and was seemingly doing a good job. Agnes and all other transport services were still on duty, so there was no let up in their work-load and Agnes was happy to do the work as she felt she was doing Scotland proud. Her driver laughed every time she said it and during this miniature cold snap, keeping up morale was very useful indeed.  
"Weather like this reminds me of the good old days up in the vicious cold snaps of bonny old Scotland!" said Agnes proudly to her driver. He didn't say anything, he just agreed with her and drove her along being careful all the time. Occasionally, they'd see the odd animal crossing the road bringing food along to their shelters. In the skies aswell, there weren't many birds about and when they did see one, it was only returning to its nest.  
"Poor animals..." said Agnes "Their doing the right thing by sheltering!" she added.  
"Shame we can't..." muttered her driver to himself who could see his breath before him. The inside of Agnes was cold and what heat the heater gave off, it wasn't enough.  
"Stop complaining, driver!" moaned Agnes. "This is pretty warm compared to a Scottish cold snap!" she added. Her driver didn't speak, mainly because he didn't want to annoy Agnes, but also in the cold, his lips were sticking together and it was making it hard to speak. Agnes was very happy because of this and decided to talk, and talk, and talk for long periods of time about things that were insignificant just for the purpose of annoying her driver.

The next day wasn't any better either weather-wise as the ice as expected formed on the roads and in the early hours, Gabby was sent out to grit the roads.  
"I'm a gritting...I'm a gritting...I'm a gritting the roads!" she sang to herself repeatedly as she gritted the roads. Ice had badly affected the rails and provisionally, for the time being, all train journeys were suspended, but due to Gabby's work on the roads, the bus services were still working. Even Cordelia, who is a coach was being used to take passengers whose train journey had been affected by the ice.  
"I'm not a bus!" she protested to her passengers "Treat me nicely! Your lucky to be traveling on me!" she added. The passengers obliged and Cordelia was very happy with them indeed. Bertie was happy too with his passengers, it was just mainly Agnes with her passengers who all happened to be Tennis Players.  
"How can you play Tennis in this bad weather?" she asked them as they boarded her.  
"We'll make sure we can!" said one of them.  
"You haven't answered my question!" protested Agnes.

"Never mind..." interrupted her driver. "Let's set off then..." and they did. Gabby had done an excellent job on the roads and they were in perfect condition for buses and cars to travel on, but once again, animals were crossing the roads with just moments to spare as traffic passed them. Agnes was getting annoyed with the animals.  
"Stay in your shelters!" she cried out, but her shouting stirred a Magpie who cawed extremely loudly from its nest. Agnes instantly looked up to see the commotion, but in doing so, she hadn't noticed on the road that a squirrel was crossing right infront of them. Her driver noticed just in time and applied the brakes. The sudden screech of the brakes got the attention of the squirrel, who immediately scampered away from the road, but the sudden breaking caused Agnes to swerve, and she swerved a lot.  
"Keep calm everyone!" cried her driver to the passengers, but it was no use.

"Help!" cried many of them, but some just stayed silent almost as if they were enjoying it. Then the swerving stopped as Agnes clipped the edge of the road and hit a great dip in the land which momentarily flipped her onto two wheels.  
"AAAHHHHHH!" cried Agnes as she saw Sodor at an angle. Then she landed back on all four wheels and stopped finally.  
"Phew..." said her driver.  
"Indeed..." agreed Agnes. The Tennis players were all seemingly fine, just a little shaken by the event which was understandable. In the process though, Agnes has punctured a tyre, and Butch the Recovery Unit soon came to tow her back to the Bus Depot where a new tyre was fitted. The Tennis players then got Bertie to take them to the Tennis court while Agnes just rested after a different day to say the least.

By morning, the icy weather had all but gone and Gabby's services were no longer needed. She didn't mind, she knew when Winter properly started she'd be back again and maybe she could stay permanently, but she doubted that. As she left though, she sang her song once again, although it was slightly different this time.  
"I was a gritting...I was a gritting...I was a gritting those Sodor roads!" She beeped her horn as she left leaving everyone safe in the mind that the roads were now safe enough to go back to their old, normal speeds. Agnes was especially happy with this as she felt good again to be zooming along the roads rather than trundling through them like Cordelia who constantly admires the view along the way. However, after the incident, Agnes is more careful around areas where she knows animals are likely to be crossing the road, and as they do, she can only say a simple thankyou.**  
**


	3. Bertie and the Jam Sandwiches

Lee's Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends

Stories

**Bertie and the Jam Sandwiches**

Bertie the bus is just like any other bus who regularly takes passengers all around the Island of Sodor. He enjoys the view as he goes round Sodor as his passengers look on at the wondrous sights of bristling neighborhoods with ever expanding communities and the pure natural beauty of the countryside too. His passengers always thank him for the ride they get and he appreciates it a lot. From time to time aswell, Bertie takes more important passengers along with him such as the Railway Board and the famous singer Alicia Botti, but today was a little bit different because the Fat Controller and Lady Hatt were holding a picnic for the whole of Sodor, and Bertie was to take them to the picnic grounds as the Fat Controller's car had broken down a few days earlier. Bertie was extremely happy, and couldn't wait to feel very important indeed.

The day started off like any other for Bertie as he woke up in the Bus Depot alongside Agnes and Cordelia. They weren't being utilised for the picnic and both were slightly jealous that the Fat Controller picked Bertie rather than one of them.  
"He'll pick either of you next time..." said Bertie cheerily to them both.  
"It's a one-off!" replied Agnes.

"How are we meant to be picked then?" protested Cordelia. Bertie couldn't find a reply, and an awkward silence fell in the depot until the Fat Controller arrived.  
"Bertie!" he boomed. "Me and my Wife are greatly thankful for your help today and without a doubt, we'll have to make it up to you!"  
"Oh thankyou, Sir!" replied Bertie. Agnes and Cordelia were made even more jealous by this, and without a doubt, they still felt the Fat Controller and Lady Hatt made the wrong choice in choosing Bertie, but they didn't want to rain on his parade, so they kept quiet while Bertie was in his moment of glory, and with that, they left to do their days work while Bertie was staying in the depot and could relaxed while he was polished by some workmen.  
"Oh this is brilliant!" said Bertie to himself, but he hadn't noticed that the Fat Controller was now already loading up Bertie with some of the food for the picnic.  
"Hmmm...Jam Sandwiches..." muttered the Fat Controller. "Very yummy indeed!" Bertie just look amazed with the very beautiful baskets of food being loaded onto him, this was surreal indeed, but before he knew it, the men had finished polishing him and the baskets of food had been loaded into him while the Fat Controller sat in one of the few seats remaining.  
"Come on Bertie!" he said. "Let's got fetch my Wife!" Bertie's driver then got into his seat and then they were off to the picnic site which was being held in the very big Sodor Park where the Brass Band were playing for everyone who was visiting. Bertie was very happy indeed and now felt very important too.

Soon enough, Bertie arrived at the Hatt house where Lady Hatt had come dressed in her beautiful blue dress and was also sporting a bonnet today as she always wanted to look her best.  
"Oh...Topham...now this is a bus I'm proud to ride unlike that other red bus called Bertie!" said Lady Hatt in her very posh voice.  
"Dear...this is Bertie..." corrected the Fat Controller. Lady Hatt ignored her error and just boarded Bertie and then they were off. The scenery that passed them by on the way to the Picnic site was utterly beautiful and Lady Hatt just watched in amazement as the ride continued while the Fat Controller kept an eye on all the baskets of food as the slightly bumpy road could mean it ending in disaster, but luckily it didn't. They arrived without any problems at all and as Bertie pulled up, his door opened and Lady Hatt left elegantly to a round of applause. Then when the Fat Controller left Bertie, the round of applause got louder and cheers erupted from the crowd. Lady Hatt felt slightly embarrassed and couldn't believe her husband got a bigger reception than she did.  
"No need to worry dear..." comforted the Fat Controller. "You'll be the star of today!" he added as indeed Lady Hatt would be as she was the main host for the picnic and as the baskets of food were unloaded from Bertie, along came Lawrence the Loading Lorry with many more baskets of food which were soon unloaded too, but what they didn't know what that a pack of Jam Sandwiches had fallen out of their basket and right underneath Bertie's front right wheel. As the last of the food was unloaded, the Fat Controller and lady Hatt thanked Bertie many times for his help and then as he set off to go back to the depot, he ran over the pack of Jam Sandwiches. The pack burst open and Jam spewed out right onto Lady Hatt and her blue dress.  
"AAAHHHHH!" she cried as the Jam spewed all over her and her dress. The Fat Controller was shocked at first, but immediately couldn't help laughing at his Wife's sudden Jam issue.  
"Oh no..." cried Bertie who felt very sorry now.

"No need to worry Bertie" called the Fat Controller.

"Oh yes there is!" cried Lady Hatt. "That silly little Bus has ruined my dress! Look at me, I'm not smart at all!"  
"Well no...you're not really..." replied the Fat Controller. Lady Hatt then immediately re-boarded Bertie and told him to take her home. He did immediately and Lady Hatt went back in and a few minutes later came back out in a red dress with a red bonnet.  
"Much better..." she said to herself. Bertie then took her back to the Picnic where everyone had now started eating without her. She didn't mind, she was now atleast in a much better state than she was earlier and could now host the Picnic without any worries at all.

That night at the Bus Depot, Bertie told Agnes and Cordelia about the incident who both laughed a lot until they noticed Lady Hatt had entered the depot.

"Bertie..." she called. "Once again, thankyou for your help today even in those difficult moments."  
"Thankyou Lady Hatt..." replied Bertie. Lady Hatt then had some news to announce to all the Buses.  
"Everyone, I have good news, after today's successful Sodor Picnic, me and my Husband will be hosting another one in a few weeks time and it will be bigger and better than today's one, so we will need all of you to help!" Agnes and Cordelia were very surprised indeed.

"Oh thankyou!" they said in unison.

"No problem" replied Lady Hatt. "We'll just have to make sure there are no Jam Sandwiches next time though! I don't want another dress ruined!" she added as she and everyone then laughed about the days event.


	4. Bulgy in the China Shop

Lee's Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends

Stories

**Bulgy in the China Shop**

It was early one morning on the Island of Sodor and Percy was resting after a busy shift with the mail train. His wheels ached but he enjoyed the work. It was so peaceful but the peace was soon interrupted by the arrival of Bulgy beside him. Bulgy was back to being a passenger bus once more after his stint as a vegetable bus grew tiresome in recent months. He still didn't like passengers but he enjoyed the open road and looking at the shops and scenery that Sodor provided for him. Percy didn't look too pleased to see Bulgy and Bulgy didn't look pleased to see Percy.  
"I doubt anything interesting has happened to you rail dwellers lately?" sneered Bulgy as his passengers disembarked. Percy just looked on unimpressed.  
"Not really…" he replied. "Although it's always more interesting than what happens on the roads."  
"Really?" retorted Bulgy disdainfully. Percy now looked unsure with his own words but carried on.  
"Well driver told me of the burglary at the Jewellers this morning. Burglaries don't happen to those on the rails! Driver said whoever did it was like a bull in a china shop!" he then said proudly.  
"A bull in a china shop?" said Bulgy. "What a strange saying…"  
"Driver says it means it…" began Percy.  
"I know what it means you silly thing…" interrupted Bulgy before he set off all of a sudden with a beep of his horn. Percy still looked just unimpressed but dismissed Bulgy's rudeness and just carried on relaxing.

Later on, Bulgy was still parading round the roads and was thoroughly enjoying himself. Oddly, he wasn't being annoyed by his passengers at all today and was delighting in the peace and quiet he was getting. His passengers too were equally as impressed and were surprised with how smooth the ride was as Bulgy had a reputation for a rough ride.  
"This is marvellous…" said one passenger. "A proper, good and reliable bus…"  
"Comfy too…" remarked another. Bulgy had never been so pleased with passengers and really couldn't believe that they were in praise of him as it made such a nice change.  
"Now why can't they be like this all the time?" he muttered to himself as he came to a halt at a crossing. There coming through was Percy who still didn't look too impressed with him once more. Bulgy tried to be kind and friendly and was about to say hello to Percy but he could see Percy wasn't in the mood for pleasantries at all. When he passed by and the crossing gates opened, Bulgy carried on his way once more with the passengers calling his praises for the smoothest ride they'd ever had in a bus. Bulgy's new found praise was causing jealously among the other buses of Sodor and Bertie was becoming the most jealous of all.  
"How can they be in praise of him?" wondered Bertie. "This is Bulgy were talking about!"  
"Wait and see Bertie…" said his driver. "He'll be more like himself in time and that might be sooner than you'd think…"

That bit later when Bulgy was on a break from taking passengers all around Sodor, he was still amazed that everyone around him was seemingly talking about the burglary at the Jewellers.  
"Is everyone obsessed with this story?" Bulgy asked indignantly.  
"Well it is interesting…" replied Bulgy's driver as his got out of his seat. "Now just don't bother anyone while I go for my sandwiches!" he added as he then went into the nearest sandwich shop. Bulgy just took it as a chance to look around at all the wonderful shops and scenery he could see around him in the hilly village. Bulgy took particular interest in the Fine China shop just located further down the road. Bulgy passed it near enough every day and admired the craftsmanship that went into each piece. He knew it was a very odd thing for someone like him to take an interest in, but Bulgy simply didn't care. Bulgy then began to dream about his place at the bus depot being filled with fine china and how magnificent it would look. He hoped the other buses would become jealous of his fine china space but Bulgy's dreaming was cut short by the loud whistle of George the Steamroller who was passing by.  
"Wake up you lazy bus!" groaned George as he slowly carried on down the road. Bulgy didn't bother retorting as he could only smile as George was holding back a lot of other vehicles on the way. Horns beeped loudly in frustration and Bulgy just chuckled to himself as he then thought about the fine china once more.

"Last trip of the day!" beamed Bulgy brightly a little later as he began the final journey of the day. The passengers were once again singing Bulgy's praises as nothing had gone wrong at all. Bulgy knew that on this journey he would be passing by the fine china store and all he could think about was fine china once more and how wonderful it was. He was getting distracted somewhat but his driver was concentrating as hard as ever and ensured he was making the journey as smooth as possible. As Bulgy neared the hilly village, his dreams of the fine china intensified and he became thoroughly distracted.  
"Come on Bulgy…" said his driver. "Concentrate and you'll be home soon!" but Bulgy didn't seem to respond. Bulgy's driver kept on trying to get his full attention but as a result he became distracted and didn't have full attention on the road.  
"Driver!" called one passenger. "Can't you hear those sirens?"  
"What sirens?" asked Bulgy's driver.  
"THOSE SIRENS!" called several passengers. Bulgy's driver then saw that coming in his direction was a Police car, an Ambulance and a Fire engine. They were all heading to one accident further down the hill and Bulgy and his driver weren't aware of this at all. Bulgy's driver panicked and instead of pressing the brake he mistakenly put his foot fully down on the accelerator.  
"Oh dear!" cried Bulgy as he lurched forward at speed. Bulgy's passengers panicked and so did his driver. As the Police car, Ambulance and Fire engine all neared, Bulgy's driver swerved suddenly and Bulgy couldn't believe where he was heading. He was going directly towards the Fine China shop!  
"STOP!" cried the passengers as they held on. Bulgy's driver applied the brakes but it was simply too late. Bulgy ploughed straight into the fine china shop and obliterated the displays. Fine china and glass was smashed and scattered everywhere.  
"Of all the places to crash…" muttered Bulgy as his engine hissed loudly before making him disappear in a cloud of steam.

Luckily no-one had been hurt in the accident but it was Bulgy's pride in the fine china that had been hurt the most. The shop's owner was furious and couldn't believe that almost all of their stock had been destroyed. The shop itself was also badly damaged and would take a long time to repair. When Butch the Breakdown Van had eventually pulled Bulgy out of the store, he was taken to the Fitter's Yard where the workmen would in time get round to fixing him. Bulgy was just still in disbelief at what had happened and really didn't want to talk about it, but he couldn't avoid the matter as Percy was on his break and wanted to speak to him.  
"Fancy that!" laughed Percy. "All this talk of bulls in china shops and in actual fact it was Bulgy in a china shop!"  
"Yeah…funny that!" grimaced Bulgy. "It's just my luck!"  
"Well I'm sure you'll be fixed in no time at all…" smiled Percy. "But when you are fixed, I best warn all the shop owners that you might be popping in at any time!"  
"Yeah, do that…" frowned Bulgy. Percy soon left to continue with work whilst Bulgy was left to mull over the irony of the accident before dreaming of his space at the depot being filled with lots and lots of fine china, which hopefully hadn't been smashed to smithereens.


	5. Mud Pit

Lee's Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends

Stories

**Mud Pit**

It was raining heavily on the Island of Sodor but people's spirits weren't dampened as a famous rock band, Slippery Socks, were set to perform in front of many that night. Excitement was building all around for those concerned as the booking of the band had been quite a coup for Sodor. Jeremy the Jet Plane was bringing them in from the Mainland before Henry was to pull them through to the main station. It would here that the band would be picked up by Cordelia the coach, and she was extremely proud of the occasion.  
"This emphasises how important I am…" she said grandly in front of the other buses at the depot. The others sighed. "The manager picked me because I suit these occasions well." she added.  
"We get it…" grumbled Bulgy. "You're important, we're not. Just get on and do the job." Cordelia smiled and slowly zoomed off to the station. Pride was clearly etched across her face.

The rain was casting a bed spell upon the night but fans of the band were revelling in the excitement of the grand occasion. Cordelia had never heard a rock band play before but she knew they were popular with young people. She wasn't keen on music at all really but an important job was an important one nonetheless even if she didn't like one part of it. Soon, she swayed into the pull-in at the station where just across from her were Gordon and Thomas.  
"I'm here to collect the band…" she declared grandly. "Are they here yet?"  
"No, not just yet." said Thomas. "Jeremy got delayed and Henry's running behind as a result." He then explained. Cordelia wasn't pleased and scowled.  
"See this is where it's proof that buses and coaches are the most reliable forms of transport going." she then said indignantly.  
"Huh…." huffed Gordon. "You're only getting to take the band because rails don't go to the performance area."  
"Indeed." she agreed. "But you know this band is extremely popular and if I'm carrying them, I'll be popular too."  
"Rock bands are not proper bands." denounced Gordon. "They swank about on stage and prance before shouting at the top of their voices. The music's too loud and the crowds scream too. It's just not right."  
"Come on Gordon," said Thomas. "They are only a bit of entertainment. Rock bands are fun."  
"Fun?" questioned Gordon. "It's a funny way of describing it. Give me the brass band any day over Slippery Sunglasses or whatever they're called." He was just about to complain even more when Henry slowly chugged into the station. His green paint glimmered in the evening night as street lamps reflected his colour all around. Crowds were eager to see the band and were shouting and screaming before they'd even got out of the carriages. Cordelia could see this was an important occasion and as the band slowly transferred from Henry's carriages to her pristine self, she couldn't help but smile.  
"Welcome aboard…" said Cordelia's driver with an equally big smile.  
"Hey…cool retro coach, man." said the band's lead singer as he shook his hand. Cordelia first thought he wasn't being kind but soon discovered that all of them spoke in the exact same way all of the time. The four band members weren't even sitting in her lovely red seats properly either as they decided to slouch across them as if they were beds.  
"What on earth are they thinking?" she thought to herself as she slowly pulled out from the station.

The rain wasn't relenting and Cordelia's windscreen wipers were in full use throughout the journey. The band though weren't concerned by the rain and just played card games to pass the time. Occasionally they sang out the odd line from one of their songs but neither Cordelia nor her driver appreciated it as it was more akin to screaming than actual singing.  
"Maybe this isn't such a great thing to have after all…" Cordelia then thought as the journey progressed slowly along the roads. It was getting pretty dark by now and with headlights on in full flow, Cordelia soon found herself stopped by a policeman blocking the continuing section of road she was meant to go along.  
"This section of the road is closed I'm afraid…" said the policeman sternly. "The rain's been so heavy over here that its crumbled away old parts of the road. You'll have to take the side track section of road to the right I'm afraid." he added as he pointed to the adjacent muddy section of road. Cordelia and her driver weren't pleased though.  
"You do know who were taking don't you?" said the driver. "This isn't just a general coach trip."  
"I understand the situation," replied the policeman "but you have to do as you're told."  
"But my paint will be ruined by that mud!" Cordelia then fumed.  
"I'm sorry." insisted the policeman. "But that's all we can do. If you stick to that route, you'll have to stay as far right as you can though. The mud is incredibly thick on the left. It is the best we can do." he added sternly. Cordelia and her driver weren't pleased at all. The band members weren't seeing a problem with it at all though.  
"Mud is cool…" said the drummer. "We've played concerts in conditions worse than that."  
"It can be washed off." pointed out the guitarist with the long black hair. "Trust me, I know…" he added. Cordelia was in a quandary and so was the driver. They didn't want to go through the mud but they had to take the band to their location. This was the only way if they didn't want to be late.  
"If you take that route, I swear you'll be the coolest coach and coach driver in the history of forever…" smiled the band's lead singer in encouragement.  
"Cool?" wondered Cordelia. "I'll be cool. The coolest of cool. That'd be something to tell the others." she then thought. After a brief chat with the driver, the pair agreed to proceed and slowly made their way along the muddy path.

The rain wasn't weakening and the expectant crowds at the rock band's gig were growing more and more concerned. It was near the start of the concert and the band was nowhere to be seen. There were good reasons for it though; Cordelia was struggling to make her way through the sludgy terrain. Her wheels squelched and sloshed against the mud and however much she tried to avoid splashing the mud, she couldn't prevent it splatting on her sides.  
"Urgh…" she said. "This…is….disgusting."  
"Were getting there though…" said her driver more buoyantly. The band were getting a little concerned with how slow Cordelia was going but sang to keep their spirits up. This wasn't helping Cordelia or her driver though as it distracted them greatly. With their concentration affected, they moved ever more towards the left side of the road. They'd been warned against this and as they rounded a bend, the slipping and sloshing of Cordelia's wheels got ever worse. She carried on and then suddenly she began to lean over to the left. Her wheels slipped one last time and then she tipped on her left to an awkward angle.  
"AAARGH!" Cordelia cried.  
"Woah!" called the band as they held onto their seats. As Cordelia came to a halt with a creak and a slosh, she felt embarrassed but smug at the same time.  
"I told you this wasn't the right thing to do!" she said to the driver trying to prove a point. The driver just sighed.

Time ticked and soon the start time for the concert had gone by. The fans were getting anxious and so were the guests of honour; Sir Topham and Lady Hatt.  
"I know fashionably late is very popular, Topham, but this is taking it a bit far…" commented Lady Hatt from her reserved seat.  
"Hmmm…" agreed her husband as he then went to ask some stagehands on what was happening. None of them knew and concerns were growing for everyone. The rain wasn't relenting and the crowds were starting to get rowdy. "Maybe they're caught in traffic…" said the Fat Controller doubtfully.

Meanwhile, Cordelia still felt awful. She was lodged into the sticky mud and however much the band tried to free her, they were getting nowhere. Suddenly, everyone could hear the whirr of an engine coming from in the distance and then round the bend came Austin the works lorry.  
"Oh…dear…" he gulped as he saw the severity of the situation. "Someone didn't listen to the policeman."  
"We _were_…." insisted Cordelia. "We just got momentarily distracted. I didn't think it would be this bad anyway."  
"Ah…" smiled Austin. "He didn't mention that the deep mud was disguising big potholes in the road then. That's what you've fallen into. It's quite a mud pit!"  
"Can you help us out please?" the lead singer then asked kindly. Austin was surprised to see the band. He and his driver were big fans but were unable to get to the concert as they out on duties.  
"You're Moth McCoy?!" Austin said in amazement as he couldn't quite take it in.  
"I am indeed." smiled the lead singer.  
"I'm a big fan. You're my favourite band of all time." Austin then said in an excited voice. Cordelia couldn't help but roll her eyes at Austin. The day had been odd enough as it was and now she was going to get rescued by one of the band's bigger fans.  
"If you help us out then," said Moth. "We'll make sure you get a good spot at the concert - both you and your driver. Fans deserve to see us perform." Austin and his driver agreed once he'd message base from his walkie talkie about the change in schedule, and soon they set about helping out the stricken coach. At first they went past Cordelia and then got out a tow rope and tied it on as tightly as possible. Soon, Austin began to pull as much as he could and with the band and Cordelia's driver helping to ease Cordelia out of the mud, it wasn't long before she was righted and freed.  
"As good as mud!" chuckled Austin as he began to tow them along to the concert venue. Cordelia just couldn't care anymore and let the band sing as much as they wanted. She just wanted to be back at the depot and cleaned of all the mud. Those thoughts were eventually broken by the loud noise of the crowds who cheered loudly when they arrived. The band couldn't help but smile.  
"Better late than never…" grinned Moth.  
"It's good to see you're all alright…" said the Fat Controller as he welcomed them onto the stage. As the band prepared themselves for the opening song, Cordelia and her driver slowly went away and left Austin to smile for the whole evening.  
"Were dedicating this song to Austin," sang the band before the music began. "He got us here!" Austin just couldn't help but smile and as the crowds cheered and rocked along, Cordelia just tried to shut the music out from her mind as she left the venue.  
"Rock music and mud….not a good combination…" she muttered to herself as she swayed back home. She didn't feel cool at all, she just felt tired, muddy and grumpy. This was certainly something Cordelia wasn't to go and brag about come morning…


End file.
